Step 3

Use the arrow keys to move the white circle until you can see no black around the edges

Ctrl + Click on the thumbnail of this circle layer in the layers palette to select the pixels

Select>Modify>Contract – set to 1px

Select>Inverse

Make the yin yang layer active and hit the delete key

You can now delete the white circle layer

Step 4

Ctrl + T to transform the object and rotate it a little until it is in a similar position to that shown below:

Ctrl + A to select all

Select the Move tool

Centre the object with the controls at the top of the screen:

Duplicate the layer – name this layer ‘top copy’

TIP: It could be a good idea to put a lock on the yin yang layer at this point so that you don’t accidentally move it during the next steps – do this by clicking the padlock icon at the top of the layers palette.

Step 5

Move the top copy layer away from the yin yang layer so you can see it (use the Move tool)

Ctrl + T to transform the object

Right click within the transform box and click Flip Horizontal

Right click again within the transform box and click Flip Vertical

Hit the Enter key to accept the transformation

Duplicate the layer – name the duplicate ‘bottom copy’

Using the Move tool, move the bottom copy layer away so you can see all 3 images on the screen

Step 6

Create a new layer at the top of the layers palette

Set the foreground colour to blue, or a bright colour that contrasts with your background

Select the Line tool

Set the width to 5px

Draw a line from the top left corner to the bottom right corner of the canvas

Using the Move tool, line up the objects as shown below – NOTE: the circles overlap each other a little:

Delete the line layer

Step 7

Turn off the visibility of the yin yang layer

Make the bottom copy layer active

Select the Eraser Tool and erase parts of the image as shown below – you can delete the white part using the Magic Wand tool:

Erase in the same way on the top copy layer:

Restore visibility to the yin yang layer

Step 8

Ctrl + Click on the thumbnail of the top copy layer in the layers palette to select the pixels

Select>Modify>Contract – set to 3px, click OK

Hit the Delete key

Repeat this step for the bottom copy layer

Step 9

Select the Eraser tool and erase the outer circle lines on both top and bottom copy layers so your image ends up looking like this:

Step 10

Unlock the yin yang layer if you locked it by clicking on the padlock icon at the top of the layers palette

Drag the yin yang layer to the top of the palette

Create a new layer below it

Ctrl + Click on the thumbnail of the yin yang layer to select the pixels

Set foreground colour to white

Make sure your new empty layer is active

Select>Modify>Expand – set to 3px, click OK

Fill the selection with white

Turn off the visibility of the background layer and the red layer

Right click on any visible layer and click Merge Visible

Restore visibility to all layers

Step 11

Select the Magic Wand tool and click on the right side of the canvas

Select>Modify>Expand – set to 2px, click OK

Create a new layer below the merged layer

Fill the selection with white

Ctrl + D to deselect

Step 12

Make the merged layer active

Select the Magic Wand tool

Click on the left side of the canvas

Select>Modify>Expand – set to 2px, click OK

Create a new layer below the merged layer

Fill the selection with black

Merge the 3 top layers together

Step 13

Image>Rotate Canvas>180°

Ctrl + T to transform the object

Right click within the transform box and click Flip Vertical

NOTE: This last step is personal choice – you can have the image at whatever orientation you prefer.

You can now delete the red layer and flatten the image

The finished project:

I hope you were able to follow this tutorial – although quite easy to do, it was a difficult tut to write!

If you came across any problems, please let me know in the comments below – I will try to clarify anything as soon as possible.

I love using and learning Photoshop, and I also enjoy creating resources to share with the world. I am at my happiest when I have free time to further explore all that Photoshop has to offer and learn more about its powerful built-in tools. I hope people enjoy either using or learning from my free resources, and welcome any hints and tips - and of course, if you would like to offer a free resource on this site, please don't hesitate to contact me (top right of the page).